Today, I met with Robin Long to discuss how using calendars and lists is the key to reducing stress. Together, with Robin’s pilates group, we dove into the basics of establishing effective lists and a calendar that works. By the end of our discussion, you will know how to establish working calendars and lists so you can easily navigate your responsibilities in your home, family, and professional life.
Here are the Steps We Covered:
10:44 – Have a Simple, Mostly-Open Calendar
Our tendency is to either schedule nothing or to overschedule, leaving us overwhelmed or disappointed when nothing goes as planned.
An ideal calendar would only have the things that need to be done the day they are scheduled. This includes necessary events and tasks that must be completed by the end of the day. Everything else should be moved to your other lists.
15:45 – Create a Streamlined Next Actions List
This is a weekly list. It can be specific to one area of your life or a general list. The concept is to write down all of your tasks organized by context. That way, when you are in the proper context (at home, in the office, etc.) you know exactly what you need to do.
It should feel accomplishable, and the tasks should be things that you can do without hesitation. Keep your Next Actions List clear of deadlines when possible.
22:39 – Establish a Tiered Current Projects List
This is a four-tier system:
The first tier is Current Projects. This should have no more than 7-8 things spanning all three areas of your life (personal, family, and professional). As new projects come up, we strongly encourage you to consider bumping another project down a tier to keep your Current Projects List doable and stress-free.
The second tier is In Progress/Waiting. These are projects that you can’t work on right away. You might be waiting on someone else or for circumstances to be right in order to move forward.
In order to put projects into this category, make sure any reminders or notifications are set so that you are prompted when you need to start working on them again.
Tier three are projects Next-in-Line. These are projects that cannot be a priority in the moment, but that you will accomplish as soon as circumstances allow.
The final tier, Someday, is where you put things that you don’t have time to accomplish right now in your life, but that you want to be able to do someday when they fit in with your schedule. Keeping them here reminds you that they exist, but don’t need to be worked on right now.
39:27 – Put Together a Solid Routines List
This is supposed to be a wishlist of your ideal routines. It isn’t a list of all the things you must complete daily; rather a tool to help you model your day. Think of it as a multiple choice perfect day.
Some days you will be able to follow your routines very closely. Other days, you can pick and choose the things you would like to accomplish or have the time or energy to complete.
Outline them so your brain knows what it’s going for, but leave them in the background as a guide. You shouldn’t feel like you are serving your list–the list should serve you!
Now, it’s your turn to put what you’ve learned to the test! By building an effective calendar and list routine, you can effectively manage all of your responsibilities stress-free, and on-time.
Let us know how it goes in the comments section–we love to hear from you! Thank you so much for being a part of our community here at LearnDoBecome. Join us next week for a new podcast!
Related Resources
Here’s where you can find Robin Long:
Her Website | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Pinterest
Your Optimal Health Routine – with Robin Long and April Perry
This is another podcast we recorded with Robin Long, sharing specific ways you can create routines around your health so that you can optimize your systems and feel amazing. Come listen in!
Robin Long’s Balanced Life Sisterhood
Interested in doing pilates with Robin Long? You can sign up here. (Use the coupon code april20 to get a discount!)
Free Class: How to Stop Drowning in Piles
Have you had a chance to do our free training yet? We HIGHLY recommend it! We’ll teach you about four simple tools you can use to get rid of the overwhelm and piles. Come join us–just click the link above!
Ana says
Hi April!
Are you not using Evernote anymore to manage your projects, etc?
I learned with your STEP course about Evernote, hadn’t heard about Asana before.
Thanks!
Ana
Taryn Wood says
Thanks for asking, Ana! April uses Evernote as a digital filing cabinet and Asana to manage projects and tasks. If you’re part of our STEP program you can learn more about Asana in the Related Content section of the program. We also have some great resources here on our website! Just enter Asana into the search bar. Thanks for being with us!
Roxy Ferguson says
Is there a link for the video of this episode please?
Taryn Wood says
Thanks for asking, Roxy! You can see the video of the interview on our YouTube channel. Here’s the direct link to this episode, https://youtu.be/fBL–Anr3Wc. Enjoy!
Cindy says
Did you say we can print this podcast ? Where can I find it ?
Taryn Wood says
Thanks for asking, Cindy! There aren’t any printables for this episode but we do have several others available here on our website. If you remember specifically what you’re wanting to print let us know and we can point you in the right direction. Thanks for being with us!
Marilyn says
Hi, thanks once again. 😊. I’m listening regularly, trying to glean all of the details and fully implement all of this. (I’ve signed up for the step program, working on the steps.). Two quick questions :
1). Where do new “thoughts” which come up go? Meaning all sorts of things, such as “I should watch the video I watched two months ago about using tags in emails” or “I should check in with a customer who has not ordered in a while since ownership changed.”. I ask cause these are isolated tasks, not necessarily part of a project in Asana, not necessarily needing to rise above other items on my weekly Next Actions list, not projects to go to next in line projects….. Yet I don’t want to lose the thoughts or tasks.
2). I understand the tiered projects idea and its importance. But what about “someday-maybe” projects, or crazy ideas, or really long-term projects – on which it might be interesting or necessary to place a little time or energy just to see what might be possible or keep it moving just a tiny bit? Does one take maybe one small task out of a someday project and put it into the Current list? Or into the Next Actions list? How could this work?
Taryn Wood says
Thanks for these great questions, Marilyn!
1-One-time tasks can go on your weekly list if they need to be done this week. Otherwise they can go to your inbox to be processed during your Weekly Review.
2-You could definitely do as you’ve described with those someday-maybe projects! Spending 10-15 minutes could be a next action for the week to decide if you want to bring that project up or continue to let it sit. Good idea! 🙂
Kirsten Hays says
Our counselor says the schedules are for me to reduce anxiety- not serving the kids.
Im not sure how to handle this. I’ve not had a schedule but things are unmanageable without each person owning a routine.
Taryn Wood says
Kirsten, this can feel tricky! You can learn a bit about how April and Eric have handled that here, https://learndobecome.com/episode47/. We also cover routines in our STEP Program. We’d love to support you there if you’re not already a member.
Creating routines is a project that can take some time to complete but it’s so worth it in the end! Be sure that you’re scheduling time to take care of yourself as well. These two episodes offer some great suggestions on how to do that.
https://learndobecome.com/episode32/
https://learndobecome.com/episode44/
If you’re part of our Mastery program, you may consider reaching out to our Facebook group as well. The members there are so supportive and helpful in troubleshooting things like this!
Victoria says
This episode was more than half-way through before I realized you were talking about an app called Asana. I thought you were saying, “I created this in a sauna,” which would be weird.
Taryn Wood says
Victoria, you’re not the first one to think that! It can be confusing when you’re listening to a conversation. 🙂 You can learn more about it at Asana.com as well as here on our website. Thanks for being with us!!
Emily Greenberg says
Very funny and understandable!
Donna says
Thank you. I enjoyed the analogy of these concepts/tools becoming “core strengthening” to organization – for mind and paper!
I just heard the podcast, and did not see examples of things on your routines’ list. Doyle you please share a routine in each of those categories – daily, weekly…yearly? Thank you!
Taryn Wood says
Donna, thanks for asking! We share more in depth on this inside of our STEP (Steps To Everyday Productivity) program. You can also see some great ideas here on our website…just enter “routines” in the search bar. Enjoy!